by Aaron C
Earlier this year I went to the first EWOC convention at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. It was a surreal and informative experience. Over 300 people from across the country, learning more about labor organizing side by side.
During the industry breakout session there was a comrade from an Amazon Fresh store looking for organizing advice, and luckily those of us from UFCW were able to give her our pitch about the world’s largest food union and the asset that is AFL-CIO power.
One of the biggest surprises was Sara Hurd, DSA’s outgoing National Labor Commission (NLC) co-chair. On the NLC calls she comes off as a no-nonsense assertive leader, but in person she was polite and friendly. Though when it came time for business, she is still the stoic, disciplined, laser-focused comrade ready to bring the Hurd.
The training available here was a useful complement to the DSA labor training, focusing on southern organizing and multiracial organizing. There were also opportunities for us to describe the experience in our workplaces, and I was able to educate my comrades on the dynamics on the factory floor. This conference was an important reminder of the importance of workplace organizing and labor cooperation.